Canes Prepare For Big East Bout At Boston College
Feb. 13, 2003
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UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI (10-10, 3-6) vs. BOSTON COLLEGE (12-9, 5-5)
Saturday, February 15, 2003 – 4:00 p.m. (ET)
Silvio O. Conte Forum (8,606) – Chestnut Hill, MA
TV: Fox Sports Net; Radio: WQAM (560 AM)
Website: hurricanesports.com
ON BOSTON COLLEGE:
Boston College (12-9, 5-5 BIG EAST) defeated Providence,80-69, marking its fourth win in the last five games.Senior guard Troy Bell scored 33 points in the win becomingthe Eagles’ all-time leading scored with 2,369 career points.Bell and freshman Craig Smith provide the Eagles withone of the nation’s top inside/outside combinations. Bell isaveraging a team-high 24.7 points per game this season whileSmith is scoring at a 20.6 points per game clip while pullingdown a team-high 8.1 rebounds per game.
THE SERIES:
Miami and Boston College meet for the 22nd time withthe Eagles leading the all-time series 13-8. Boston Collegeswept both games last season and have won four straight inthe series. Miami is 4-6 all-time against the Eagles at ChestnutHill.
UP NEXT:
Following the Boston College game the Hurricanesconclude their two-game road trip against Providence (Feb. 17- 7:30 p.m.).
LAST GAME:
MIAMI 85, VIRGINIA TECH 65
February 11, 2003
Convocation Center, Coral Gables, FL
Darius Rice poured recorded his second double-double ofthe season with 32 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Universityof Miami to an 85-65 victory over Virginia Tech Hokies atthe Convocation Center.
James Jones added 16 points and seven boards for Miamiwhile Eric Wilkins, making his second start of the season,registered 13 points on 5- of-7 shooting from the field. RobertHite chipped in 11 points off the bench for the Hurricanes.Bryant Matthews scopred 22 points to lead Virginia Tech.Terry Taylor added 15 points.
The Hurricanes shot 42.4 percent from the field and 6-of-7from the line in the first half, which was good enough to gaina 37-33 advantage at the break.
Miami torched the nets with 63 percent shooting from thefloor in the second half to take control of the game and capturean easy 20-point win.
The Hurricanes shot a season-high 51.7 percent from thefield for the game, including 42.9 percent from beyond the arc,while holding Virginia Tech to just 37.9 percent field-goalshooting.
LAST TIME AGAINST BOSTON COLLEGE:
BOSTON COLLEGE 76, No. 12 MIAMI 63
February 10, 2002
Silvio O. Conte Forum, Chestnut Hill, MA
Troy Bell scored 24 points and Ryan Sidney added 23points and nine rebounds as Boston College beat No. 12 Miami76-63 Sunday, the Eagles’ second win over the Hurricanes in13 days.
Uka Agbai had 12 points and 10 rebounds for the Eagles,who had lost five of seven, but won 70-65 at Miami on Jan. 29.Marcus Barnes had 13 of his 16 points in the first half forMiami. John Salmons had 16 points for Miami and Darius Riceadded 15.
The Eagles relied on strong rebounding from the start,owning a 18-7 advantage in taking a 32-15 lead 15 minutes inthe game. Miami closed the half with an 8-2 run.The Eagles outrebounded Miami 45-28 for the game.The Eagles, who led 34-23 at halftime, scored the firstseven points of the second half – all by Bell – to open theirbiggest lead of the game.
BC saw its lead sliced to 56-47 on Rice’s two free throwswith 7:27 to go. But Bell answered with a 3-pointer from thetop of the key and Miami never got closer than eight points therest of the way.
TV/RADIO COVERAGE:
Miami’s game versus Boston College is being produced byESPN Regional Television and will be broadcast in Miami onFox Sports Net Florida. John Sanders and Bucky Waters willcall the action.
The game will also be broadcast on the Hurricane RadioNetwork (WQAM – 560 AM). Joe Zagacki “The Voice of theHurricanes” will handle the play-by-play. Brian London willserve as studio host. Fans can also catch the game on the webat hurricanesports.com.
A WIN AGAINST BOSTON COLLEGE WOULD:
Improve UM’s record to 11-10, 4-6 BIG EAST.Snap UM’s four-game losing streak to the Eagles.Mark UM’s first win at BC since Jan. 24, 1999.
UM SINGLE-GAME TICKETS NOW ON SALE:
Single-game tickets for the remaining men’s basaketballseason are on sale. Tickets can be purchased by calling 1-800-GO-CANES or by visiting ticketmaster.com.
ON THE COACHES:
University of Miami head coach Perry Clark is his thirdseason with the Hurricanes and 14th season overall as acollegiate head coach. Clark is 50-31 (.617) at Miami while hiscareer record stands at 235-176 (.572).
Boston College head coach Al Skinner is in his sixthseason with the Eagles and 15th season overall. His record atBC is 90-82 (.523) while his overall record is 228-208 (.523).
RICE NAMED TO MIDSEASON WOODEN LIST:
Darius Rice is among 30 midseason finalists for the 2002-03 John R. Wooden Award. A national poll was conducted bythe Wooden Award Midseason Committee to determine theTop 30 Midseason candidates.
The Wooden Award, which will be presented on April 1 inLos Angeles, is the most prestigious individual honor in collegebasketball and is bestowed upon the nation’s best player at aninstitution of higher education who has proven to his universitythat he is making progress toward graduation and maintaining acumulative 2.0 grade point average.
Rice is one of seven BIG EAST players on the list of 30candidates including Carmelo Anthony (Syracuse), MarcusHatten (St. John’s), Brandin Knight (Pittsburgh), EmekaOkafor (Connecticut), Michael Sweetney (Georgetown) andChris Thomas (Notre Dame).
COMING ON STRONG:
Miami forward Darius Rice has really heated in the month ofFebruary averaging 27.7 points per game. Rice has increased his scoringaverage each month.
CARRYING THE LOAD:
Darius Rice (20.2 ppg) and James Jones (16.9 ppg) have shoulderedthe scoring load for the Hurricanes this season. The two are accountingfor half (52.0%) of Miami’s points. The two have continued to increasetheir combined production each month. During the month of Februarythe tandem has accounted for 57.5 percent of the Hurricanes’ scoring.Here is a month-by-month breakdown.
PLAYING THEIR BEST AGAINST THE BEST:
The UM forward combination of Darius Rice and James Jones haveboth shined this season in the big games. Against ranked teams Rice isaveraging 34.3 points and 6.0 rebounds while shooting 35-69 (.507) fromthe floor and 15-33 (.455) from three-point range. Jones is averaging 21.0points against those teams while shooting 21-39 (.538) from the field.
RICE SEEING 20-20:
With his 32 points against Virginia Tech, Darius Ricerecorded his fourth consecutive game of 20 or more points. Itmarks the first time in his UM career he has posted fourconsecutive games of 20 or more points. The last player torecord four straight 20-point games was Tim James whoposted five straight during the 1998-99 season. Rice hasrecorded eight games of 20 or more points this season whichleads the team.
NO DAY AT THE BEACH:
Miami’s 73-72 win over No. 11 Connecticut this seasonmarked the ninth consecutive season that the Hurricanesdefeated a ranked opponent at home.
WORKING OVERTIME:
Miami played its fifth overtime of the season againstVillanova on February 8. Miami is 1-4 in overtime games thisseason. The five overtime games establishes a school single-seasonrecord. Miami was 3-0 last season in overtime games.Miami has played at least one overtime contest in each of thelast five seasons. UM has amassed a 9-6 record (includingtournament games) in BIG EAST overtime contests (5-3 athome). The ‘Canes own a 25-24 overall record in overtimecontests during their history (5-5 in double-overtime gamesand a 20-19 mark in single-overtime contests).
VERSUS RANKED OPPONENTS:
Miami is 1-2 against ranked teams this season. TheHurricanes are 19-19 versus ranked opponents since 1996-97and have defeated at least one ranked team in each of the lastnine seasons. Miami is 28-84 (.250) all-time against rankedteams including a 25-70 (.263) record since the rebirth of theprogram in 1985.
MIAMI GRADUATION RATE RANKS THIRD:
According to a report released by The Chronicle of HigherEducation, the University of Miami men’s basketball programranks third in the nation among the 115 Division I-A institutionswith an 82 percent graduation rate for student-athleteswho entered school from 1992-93 to 1995-96.
The national average for men’s basketball players over thatfour-year period was 34 percent. Graduation rates weretabulated and released by the NCAA in its 2002 NCAAGraduation Rates Report.
Miami’s 1993-94 to 1995-96 classes registered a perfect100 percent graduation rate.
THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME:
The University of Miami has been nearly unbeatable athome this season recording a 8-2 record while struggling onthe road posting a 1-7 mark.
MR. CLUTCH:
Darius Rice’s three-point basket with 0.5 seconds left todefeat Connecticut on January 20th marked the fourth timethis season the junior forward has hit a three-pointer at theend of regulation to either win the game or send the game toovertime.
With the Hurricanes’ down 72-69 to Florida , Riceconnected on a three-pointer from the right corner with 26seconds remaining to tie the score. Florida went on to win thegame 94-93 in double-overtime.
On January 4th against North Carolina, Rice hit a three-pointer,again from the right corner, to tie the score at 60-60with three seconds left. Miami went on to win the game 64-61.In Miami’s first meeting with Connecticut on January 11,Rice sent the game to overtime with a three-pointer from thetip of the key tying the score at 71-71 with two seconds left.Connecticut won the game 83-80.
ROAD WARRIORS:
Since the 1998-99 season, Miami is 22-15 (.595) in BIGEAST road games. The 22-15 mark ranks No. 1 in league playover that period.
MIAMI CHRISTENS CONVOCATION CENTER:
The Hurricanes christened the Convocation Center, thenew on-campus home of men’s and women’s basketball, andthe University’s first large-capacity venue for other educational,cultural and community events with a 64-61 overtime win overNorth Carolina on January 4.
The $48 million facility, totally funded through privatedonations, seats 7,000 for basketball and will provide theUniversity and the Coral Gables community with a facilitydesigned for a wide array of uses.
UM LEAVES MIAMI ARENA IN STYLE:
Miami ended its 14-year run at Miami Arena with a 68-62victory over Lehigh on December 30. Miami began playing itshome games at the Miami Arena in 1988 and registered a 135-66 (.672) record including a 5-0 record this season. Since1994-95 the Hurricanes had compiled a 98-26 (.790) overallhome record at the Arena.
ITS BEEN A WHILE:
Freshmen Robert Hite and Armondo Surratt were both inthe starting lineup for the Hurricanes’ game against Charlotteon December 15 marking the first time since the 1993-94season that two freshmen started for the Hurricanes. Thatseason freshmen Alex Fraser and Torey McCormick startedthe final 14 games of the season. Hite and Surratt have startedthe last three games together.
MIAMI vs. NON-CONFERENCE OPPONENTS:
Since joining The BIG EAST Conference beginning withthe 1991-92 season, the Hurricanes have compiled an 81-39(.672) record against non-conference opponents, including a56-13 mark (.809) at home. Miami finished 7-4 against non-conferenceopponents this season and has won 24 of its last29 games against non-conference teams. Miami has won 20consecutive home games against non-conference opponents.
RICE NAMED TO PRESEASON NAISMITH LIST:
University of Miami junior forward Darius Rice has beennamed one of 30 preseason candidates for the 2002-03Naismith College Basketball Player of the Year Award.The Naismith Awards program, now in its 35 th year,honors the outstanding college basketball players in the UnitedStates. The awards program was founded by the Atlanta TipoffClub, an organization dedicated to recognizing the achievementsof student-athletes in basketball.
The candidates were selected by a vote of the Board ofSelectors comprised of leading basketball coaches, journalistsand basketball analysts.
HURRICANES SIGN FOUR:
Head men’s basketball coach Perry Clark signed fourrecruits during the early signing period including 6-6 forwardKarron Clarke (Brooklyn, NY/The Winchendon School), 6-9forward/center Leonard Harden III (Detroit, MI/Garden CityCommunity College), 6-11 center Yankuba Camara (Gambia,West Africa/Moberly Area Community College) and 6-3combo guard Guillermo Diaz (Miami Christian Academy).
RICE, JONES JOIN 1000-POINT CLUB:
Miami senior James Jones and junior forward Darius Riceboth joined the 1,000-point club this season. Jones scored 26points against Arkansas-Pine Bluff on December 18 tobecome the 25th player in UM history to surpass 1,000 careerpoints. Junior Darius Rice scored 32 points against Florida onDecember 21 to become the 26th player in UM history toreach the 1,000-point plateau. Rick Barry who holds the Miamicareer scoring record with 2,298 points.
RICE MOVES UP 3-POINT LIST:
Darius Rice has recorded 55 three-point baskets thisseason giving him 193 for his career which places him secondon UM’s all-time career list behind Steven Edwards whoconnected on 265 three-point baskets from 1992-96.
EASY AS 1, 2, 3:
Miami failed to hit a three-point basket against Indianalast season marking just the third time in school-history thatUM failed to connect on at least one three-pointer. Miami hashit at least one trey in 482 of 485 games since the NCAAadopted the three-point shot in 1986.
The only other games in which UM failed to hit a three-pointerwere versus St. John’s on March 5, 2000 (0-13) andagainst Howard University on December 6, 1991 (0-15).Miami is 2-1 all-time when failing to hit a three-pointer.
RICE’S NIGHT:
Darius Rice poured in a career-high 43 points againstConnecticut on Jan. 20 tying him for third on the BIG EASTall-time single-game scoring list. The point total was the mostin a BIG EAST game since Feb. 20, 1996 when UM forwardSteve Rich posted 43 points against St. John’s.
OFFENSIVELY SPEAKING:
Miami shot a 31-60 (.517) from the field against VirginiaTech on February 11 marking the second time thiss season theHurricanes have shot 50 percent or better from the field. Sincethe 1998-99 season the Hurricanes are 25-1 when shooting 50percent or better from the field. Miami has won its last 11games when shooting 50 percent or better.
GETTING DEFENSIVE:
Last season Miami’s defense was been adept at forcing itsopponents into turnovers. The Hurricanes forced 554turnovers (17.3 per game) including 285 steals (8.9 per game).UM averaged 19.1 points per game off turnovers.
This season Miami has forced 373 turnovers (18.7 pergame) while scoring 402 points off those turnovers (20.1points per game). Miami has recorded 28.2 percent (402 of1428) of its total points this season off turnovers.
JONES MOVES UP CAREER LIST:
James Jones has recorded 36 blocks this season toimprove his career total to 178. The 178 blocks ranks third onUM’s all-time career list.
WATCH YOUR WALLETS:
The University of Miami ranks No.1 in the BIG EASTand 5th in the nation in steals. UM has recorded 206 steals(10.3 spg) this season including a school-record 21 againstSavannah State on Dec. 30. Miami recorded 285 steals lastseason, an average of 8.9 steals per game. The Hurricanesended the season two steals shy of tying the UM single-seasonrecord of 287 set in 1988-89 (31 games). Miami is on pace torecord 288 steals this season.
LOCKING UP:
Last season Miami made a habit of holding teams withouta field goal for long stretches. The Hurricanes held teamswithout a field goal for five minutes or more a total of 27times while holding teams scoreless for five or more minutesfive times.
This season the Hurricanes have held teams without afield goal for 5 or minutes 13 times.
